Stonefish-ed almost @ St John's Island 15May2010

Stonefish-ed almost @ St John's Island 15May2010 from BeachBum on Vimeo.

Was out on an early morning 4am trip at St John's Island and kept a lookout for the dreaded hollow cheeked stonefish. I did not locate any amongst the intertidal pools but a shout from the others saw me carefully walking over. One of the others had narrowly escaped stepping on it whilst being distracted by a small blue-spotted stingray.

The stonefish has an extremely rigid front but a soft tail end.

The underside is reddish whilst the topside is usually a dirty brown being covered by sediment and algae....perfect camouflage!. Strangely the gills are yellowish orange.

Stonefish are almost always seen in the intertidal zones with their tails curled. Perhaps this is to ready themselves to raise their spines when needed.

Find out more about this interesting fish here :

http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/vertebrates/fish/synanceiidae/horrida.htm

Other blogs about the trip :-

http://wildshores.blogspot.com/2010/05/fishy-morning-at-st-johns.html

http://sgn090608.blogspot.com/2010/05/100515-st-johns-island.html

http://wondercreation.blogspot.com/2010/05/colourful-st-johns-reef.html

http://wondercreation.blogspot.com/2010/05/half-snorkelling-at-new-stretch-of-st.html

http://wondercreation.blogspot.com/2010/05/brittle-star-hitching-ride-on-jellyfish.html

Toxic garbage island

Toxic Garbage Island Episode 1 from VBS.TV on Vimeo.

Come aboard as the VBS crew takes a cruise to the Northern Gyre in the Pacific Ocean, a spot where currents spin and cycle, churning up tons of plastic into a giant pool of chemical soup, flecked with bits and whole chunks of refuse that cannot biodegrade.

Notable Videos - Douglas Adams : Parrots, the Universe and Everything

http://www.ted.com/talks/douglas_adams_parrots_the_universe_and_everything.html

Striped Eel-Tailed Catfish @ Pulau Hantu 17Apr2010

Striped Eel-Tailed Catfish from BeachBum on Vimeo.

Find out more about the Striped Eel-Tailed Catfish :
http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/vertebrates/fish/plotosidae/lineatus.htm

red crinoid @ Pulau Hantu 17Apr2010

red crinoid from BeachBum on Vimeo.

music : Touching Moments One - Pulse : Kevin Macleod- http://incompetech.com

Find out more about featherstars here :
http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/echinodermata/crinoidea/crinoidea.htm
http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/echinodermata/crinoidea/red.htm

here is a clip of a featherstar actively waving its arms in an attempt to swim :

red featherstar @ labrador from BeachBum on Vimeo.

ribbon jellyfish @ Pulau Hantu 17April2010

Ribbon Jellyfish @ Pulau Hantu 17Apr2010 from BeachBum on Vimeo.

The March-April period seems to be jellyfish season.
Perhaps it is a coincidence that it coincides with the coral spawning period as well! Depending on the species jellyfish may eat plankton or fish or other swimming organisms like shrimp.

No humans were stung during the production of this clip! But the risk is an ever present one...which is why it is not advisable to go into the water with exposed skin. (I wonder about all those swimmers and triathletes in their various races in March and April and whether they get stung.) The longest of the ribbon jellyfish seen were about 40cm long and the smallest was about 10 cm (from the top of the bell to the end of the longest tentacle).

Read more about jellyfish and ribbon jellyfish from WildSingapore's Wildfacts pages here:
http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/cnidaria/others/jellyfish/jellyfish.htm
http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/cnidaria/others/jellyfish/ribbon.htm

Jellyfish are a favourite food for marine turtles. Strangely, turtles do not get stung by the stingers on the jellyfish tentacles.

Sadly, with the increase of marine pollution and the irresponsible or careless disposal of plastic bags and the mass release of balloons, these and other indigestible items do end up in the marine ecosystem where turtles may try to eat them with fatal results.

Read more about how these improperly disposed materials affect turtles here :
http://www.seaturtlefoundation.org/stf-current-projects/campaigns/marine-debris/

Other links :
www.oceanconservancy.org
www.algalita.org
http://coastalcleanup.nus.edu.sg/
http://coastalcleanup.wordpress.com/

music : Touching Moments One - Pulse : Kevin Macleod- http://incompetech.com